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Today in Palestine! ~ Headlines ~ |
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Land Theft and Destruction
Biden condemns new E. Jerusalem settlements (AP)
AP - Vice President Joe Biden is condemning Israel's approval of 1,600
new settlement homes in disputed East Jerusalem and says the timing
undermines the peace process the United States is attempting to revive.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100309/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_us_israel_palestinians
Biden, WH condemn E. Jerusalem housing plan
Vice
President
Joseph Biden condemned the decision today by Israel's
Interior Ministry to build another 1,600 housing units in East
Jerusalem, saying it "undermines the trust" and "runs counter"
to hard-fought U.S. efforts to advance Israeli-Palestinian peace
negotiations. "I condemn the decision by the government of Israel to
advance planning for new housing units in East Jerusalem,"
Biden, currently in Israel, said in a statement. "The substance and
timing of the announcement, particularly with the launching of
proximity talks, is precisely the kind of step that undermines the
trust we need right now and runs counter to the constructive
discussions that I’ve had here in Israel."
http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/0310/Gibbs_US_condemns_E_Jerusalem_housing_plan.html#
UN joins Biden in condemning Israel settlement plan
UNITED
NATIONS,
March 9 (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on
Tuesday condemned Israeli plans to build 1,600 more homes on occupied
land where Palestinians seek their own state, echoing comments made
earlier by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N09103545.htm
EU's Ashton slams Israeli settlement move (AFP)
AFP
- European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton on Wednesday
condemned Israel's plan to build 1,600 new homes in occupied east
Jerusalem, following on from stern US and UN criticism.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100310/wl_mideast_afp/mideastpoliticssettlerjerusalempalestinianeu
MJ Rosenberg: Netanyahu Disses Biden Who Praises Him
As Peacemaker
What a surprise. Vice President Biden is in Israel and, right in front
of him, the Israeli government announces 1,600 new settler
housing units. Biden is in Israel to kick off indirect negotiations
between
Israelis and Palestinians. Of course, as the Washington Post pointed
out in an editorial today, this could be seen as "a
step backward...since the two sides have been talking directly to each
other, off and on since 1991."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mj-rosenberg/netanyahu-disses-biden-wh_b_492040.html
Palestinians: East Jerusalem build plan ends Mideast
peace talks
Israel's
decision to approve new East Jerusalem houses effectively prevents any
peace negotiations from taking place, the Palestinian Authority said on
Tuesday, following an Interior Ministry statement released earlier
authorizing 1,600 new housing units.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155171.html
Israel backs East Jerusalem build
Israel announces 1,600 new homes for east Jerusalem, threatening to
overshadow the US vice-president's visit.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/2/hi/middle_east/8558347.stm
Abbas: Israel creating provocation
Decision
to construct 1,600 housing units in east Jerusalem liable to undermine
negotiations, destroy efforts to renew talks, PA president says.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3860374,00.html
Abbas asks AL to respond to new settlement project
RAMALLAH, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on
Tuesday urged the Arab League (AL) to respond to Israel's decision to
construct more houses in an East Jerusalem settlement. Abbas made his
request during an urgent phone call with the AL Secretary General Amr
Moussa following Israel's approval to construct 1,600 new houses in a
Jewish neighborhood in East Jerusalem, said the Palestinian National
Authority (PNA)'s Wafa news agency.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-03/10/c_13204114.htm
Jewish housing plan illegal, ill-timed -France
PARIS,
March 10 (Reuters) - Israeli plans to build 1,600 Jewish homes in the
occupied West Bank are illegal and their announcement ill-timed just
after Palestinian-Israeli agreement on indirect peace talks, France's
foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LDE6291R7.htm
The
Hebronisation of Jerusalem | Mick Dumper
The recent escalation of tensions in Jerusalem with clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police
in and around the Old City appear to signify the emergence of a
disturbing new trend: the Hebronisation of Jerusalem. This presages not
only the triumph of the radical settler groups in taking over
culturally sensitive parts of the city, but also further violence and
turmoil. More importantly it also interrupts the delicate moves towards
the resumption of negotiations between the
Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority/PLO.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/mar/10/jerusalem-hebron-israel-palestine
Settlers
destroy natural spring used by Palestinians for farming near Salfit
A
group of Israeli settlers today destroyed a spring by the village of
Qarawat Bani Hassan in the Salfit district. The settlers poured sand
and cement into the spring, guarded by five armed members of the
Israeli military. Palestinians from the village were forced to watch
helplessly as events unfolded, prevented by the soldiers from moving
close to the spring or from filming what was happening. International
Solidarity Movement volunteers were able to secretly film for a short
time before the soldiers noticed, and made both Palestinians and
Internationals leave, saying that the area was now designated as a
Closed Military Zone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZKjdDaZhwc&feature=player_embedded
http://palsolidarity.org/2010/03/11679
Israel policy allows settlers to rampage unchecked
In
everything connected to the settlers and settlements, the government
has a "ya'ani" policy. Enforcement of the law in the territories is
"ya'ani," except when it comes to transforming the West Bank into a
Garden of Eden for settler law-breakers. The hilltop youth can set fire
to mosques, fields, homes and cars, beat up Palestinian farmers and
damage property and people, all thanks to the "ya'ani" policy of the
Israeli government.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155498.html
Activism/Solidarity/Boycott,Sanctions
and
Divestment
Boycott Israeli Apartheid:
Global Action!
http://www.tadamon.ca/post/5895
Palestinians Protest The Israeli Buffer Zone In
Northern Gaza StripPalestinians
along with international supporters organized on Tuesday a protest at
the Eriz crossing at the northern Gaza Strip borders protesting the
Israeli army attempts to create a buffer zone.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=58168
Pro-Palestinians protest outside Israeli film
festival in Paris
Pro-Palestinian activists began protesting outside of the Israeli film
festival being held in Paris. Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat
decided to participate in the festival's opening ceremony despite the
French security guards' suggestion to cancel the event.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3860403,00.html
Sheikh
Jarrah Mass RallyThousands
of Israeli and Palestinian activists joined the rally last Saturday in
Est Jerusalem to protest the eviction of Arab families from Sheikh
Jarrah, where Jewish settlers continue to occupy Palestinian homes. The
photos were taken by Brady Ng, FLV, Julian.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1293In NY, silent protest greets architect of Gaza
onslaught
Alex Kane at the Indypendent has a report on the silent march tonight by hundreds
outside the Waldorf, where an IDF fundraiser featured the Israeli
military’s chief of general staff, Gabi Ashkenazi.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/in-ny-silent-protest-greets-architect-of-gaza-onslaught.html
Israel’s existential crisis comes to New York, Philip WeissOften
these
days I hear people talk about how much progress the left has made
in breaking open the Israel/Palestine issue in the U.S., and yes I make
this claim myself, but last night offered clear evidence that we are
doing so. At the behest of 20-odd
peace groups, several
hundred people marched around the Waldorf Astoria silently as the
Israeli military held a million-dollar fundraiser inside. Now and then
donors in black tie got out of cabs, but here we were in single file,
most of us wearing black, stretching all the way round the hotel and
holding signs naming 5-year-olds who were slaughtered in Gaza.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/israels-existential-crisis-comes-to-new-york.html
In
Nabi Saleh, Women Stand UpLast
year, six housewives from the village launched “Budhur”. The women
group is active on social, political and women's issues. Budhur,
meaning “before blooming”, is an initiative that claims to be
innovative. Written and photographed by Valentine Van Vyve. Being a
woman in Nebi Saleh might be different from being a woman in any other
Palestinian village. Creating Budhur can be considered as a civic act:
“Because we, women, are a part of the society, we want to play a role
in our own community”, told Nareman Tamimi, the president of Budhur.
“Through our actions, we are a strength for the community too and we
should be considered as such”, she added.
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1292
Interview with Gaza rights defender: "Siege began in
1967"
BRUSSELS (IPS) - For the first time since September 2006, Mahmoud Abu
Rahma, a leading figure in the Palestinian human rights group Al Mezan,
has been granted permission to travel outside Gaza. More than 30
applications to leave the Strip had previously been turned down by the
Israeli authorities and it was not until German diplomats made
representations on his behalf that he was finally allowed to visit
Europe.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11121.shtml
Why Israel jailed me for ‘talking too much’
The
Palestinian
elected leadership is weak. And even with Vice
President Joe Biden’s visit to Israel, the West Bank and Jordan this
week, the renewed Middle East peace process appears to be little more
than a charade. Israel has taken this opportunity to crack down on
Palestinians who
advocate nonviolent protests against the Israeli West Bank segregation
barrier and charged them based on questionable or false evidence. I
know: I was arrested for talking too much. All we Palestinians want is
a life free from racial discrimination. During 2009, 89 peaceful
apartheid wall protesters were arrested; since January, more than 40
have been arrested.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2010/0309/Why-Israel-jailed-me-for-talking-too-much
Amy Goodman: Rachel Corrie's (posthumous) Day in
Court, Amy Goodman
An
unusual trial begins in Israel this week that people around the world
will be watching closely. It involves the tragic death of a 23-year-old
American student named Rachel Corrie. On March 16, 2003, she was
crushed to death by an Israeli military bulldozer. Corrie was
volunteering with the group International Solidarity
Movement (ISM), which formed after Israel and the United States
rejected a proposal by then-United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights Mary Robinson to place international human-rights monitors in
the occupied territories. The ISM defines itself as "a Palestinian-led
movement committed to resisting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian
land using nonviolent, direct-action methods and principles." Israel
was building a large steel wall to separate Rafah from Egypt, and was
bulldozing homes and gardens to create a "buffer zone." Corrie and
seven other ISM activists responded to a call on that March day to
protect the home of the Nasrallah family, which was being threatened
with demolition by two of the armored Israeli military bulldozers made
by the U.S. company Caterpillar.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amy-goodman/rachel-corries-posthumous_b_492537.html
7
Years After Killing, Family of Slain US Peace Activist Rachel Corrie
Heads to Israel for Wrongful Death Suit Against Israeli Gov't
Rachel
Corrie,
a twenty-three-year-old student from Evergreen College in
Olympia, Washington, was crushed to death by an Israeli army bulldozer
in Gaza seven years ago as she stood before a Palestinian home facing
demolition. Today, a trial opens in Israel in a lawsuit brought by
Corrie’s family against the Israeli government. The eyewitness
testimony is expected to challenge Israel’s version of events with
evidence that she was clearly visible to the soldiers, standing before
the bulldozer in her florescent orange jacket. We spend the hour with
Rachel Corrie’s family: her father Craig, her mother Cindy, and her
sister Sarah.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/3/10/family_of_slain_us_peace_activist
Pro-Apartheid (Also see Israel's Arab Helpers)
Leaked
anti-BDS document?
I have been sent this lengthy document
titled Delegitimization of
Israel: "Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions".
I'm posting the whole thing here but, be warned, I said it's lengthy
and it has been suggested that it could be a double bluff intended more
for the eyes of BDS advocates than BDS opponents. One of my
correspondents also thought it read like a "protocols" type forgery.
This isn't to say that it is a forgery or that it isn't to be taken
seriously.
http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.com/2010/03/leaked-anti-bds-document.html
Violence and Aggression
The
Israeli Army Shells Residents’ Homes In Eastern Gaza Strip
Israeli
tanks
opened fire on Wednesday afternoon at residents’ homes and farm
lands located close to the eastern Gaza Strip boarders. Residents
reported damage to their homes and groves but no injuries. Local
sources said that the shelling was concentrated near the evacuated
Israeli settlement of Nahal OZ. The bombardment was accompanied with
fake air raids by Israeli jet fighters in the area, witnesses told
local media.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=58179
PA
official: Israeli settlers set fire to car near Nablus
Nablus
– Ma'an – Israeli settlers set fire to a Palestinian car in the
northern West Bank on Wednesday, a Palestinian Authority official
said. Ghassan Daghlas, who holds the PA's northern settlements
portfolio, said Civil Defense forces were investigating an arson in the
village of Burin, south of Nablus, allegedly set by residents of the
illegal Yitzhar settlement.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=267583
Detainees
Israel
kidnaps Palestinian in Jenin
March
10, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - Israeli occupation force detained today a
Palestinian citizen from Rumana village west of Jenin. Security
sources said to WAFA news agency that Israeli occupation force detained
Mohammed Kamel Igbarieh, 25 years, at a military checkpoint at the
entrance of the village. They added that Israeli occupation forces have
stepped up today their patrols in Sanur, Maithaloun, and Seres towns
south of Jenin, while no detentions were reported.
http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/west-bank/4701-israel-kidnaps-palestinian-in-jenin
Israeli
group: Police improperly arresting kids
JERUSALEM
— Israeli police are improperly arresting Palestinian boys in nighttime
raids in Jerusalem that involve assault rifle wielding security forces
handcuffing minors and interrogating them without lawyers or parents,
an Israeli rights group charged Tuesday.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jN-AOpnCPB5CrZuJBXPlfX1q26WwD9EBBQJO4
Humanitarian
Issues/Human Rights/Siege
Soldiers Attempt to Strip-Search Five Palestinian
Women
Five
Palestinians women preferred to go home rather than heading to an
Israeli prison to visit their detailed family members after Israeli
soldiers stationed at a Roadblock near the central West Bank city of
Ramallah demanded to strip-search them.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=58170
OPT:
Uphill battle to supply prosthetics to Gaza war injured
GAZA
CITY,
10 March 2010 (IRIN) - A half-finished two-story building in
central Gaza City is one of the few places providing support to
amputees, most of them civilian victims of the Israel-Palestinian
conflict, as they try and come to terms with their injuries. Ten
patients were waiting to see Dr Hazem al-Shawwa, the director of
the Artificial Limb and Polio Centre, when IRIN visited. Mostly young,
they had been caught in the violence of Israel’s 23-day assault on Gaza
at the end of 2008 and beginning of 2009, and were still learning to
use their new prosthetic limbs.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=88378
War Crimes
European
Parliament endorses Goldstone report
The
European Parliament on Wednesday supported the implementation of the
Goldstone report and said it was "concerned" about "pressure placed on
NGOs involved in the document's preparation." Jewish leaders said they
were "deeply disappointed" and puzzled by the motion.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155507.html
A
Tale of Two Richards, NADIA HIJAB
They
hail from opposite parts of the globe, but they have much in common:
Jewish; experts on and passionate defenders of international law; and
pummeling bags for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. And the future
of the law of war lies at the heart of the campaigns against them.
Richard Goldstone, whose international stature was cemented as chief
prosecutor in the Yugoslavia and Rwanda tribunals, has been excoriated
by Israel and its allies ever since his team submitted the report on
the Gaza war requested by the United Nations Human Rights Council in
September 2009. The steady stream of invective (the report is "full of
lies," and he has "used his Jewishness to jeopardize the safety and
security of Israel" are just two of the milder attacks) has also
targeted his family and taken a toll on the publicly stoic judge.
http://www.counterpunch.com/hijab03092010.html
Israel's Arab Helpers
Is
PA Guilty of Undermining BDS Campaign?
In
2008 Netanyahu announced during his election campaign that he plans to
'weave an economic peace alongside the political process which will
give a stake in peace for the moderate elements in the Palestinian
society'. (1) Since its election, the Netanyahu government has made
“economic peace” central to its policies in the West Bank. This is not
a coincidence. At a time when Palestinian civil society and grass roots
solidarity groups are calling for an economic war on Israel, the
Apartheid State has waged economic peace in order to undermine its
efforts by seeking normalization with Palestinian and Arab businesses
as well as Palestinian and Arab leaders. In order to understand what
Israel is offering and the kind of trapping that has been laid out for
Arab and Palestinian investors, we must first take a look at Israel’s
history of economic manipulation.
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=15799
Politics
and Diplomacy
Barghouthi:
“Indirect Talks Should Stop”
Palestinian
Legislator, secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative,
Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, called on the Palestinian Authority in the West
Bank to void its approval for holding talks with the Israeli government
on Benjamin Netanyahu.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=58176
Badawil: US attempts to start peace talks aimed to
abort the reconciliation
Senior
Hamas official Salah Al-Bardawil said on Tuesday that the US efforts to
launch indirect Palestinian-Israeli peace talks are frivolous attempts
aimed to undermine the national reconciliation.
http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/
Netanyahu Gives Private Talks For The Right Amount
Directly
after
finishing his first term as a Prime Minister (1999-2002),
Benjamin Netanyahu turned into “an independent figure” who became
accustomed to giving lectures and is paid millions of US dollars that
are directly deposited in his private bank account.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=58172
Haniyeh to appoint female minister
Gaza
– Ma’an – De facto Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh announced Tuesday that
his government intends to appoint a female minister to head a Women’s
Affairs Ministry in the Gaza Strip. “The government is planning to
appoint a number of female ministers to
better include them in the decision-making process,” Haniyeh told
attendees at an event honoring women in the workforce in Gaza City.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=267414
MK Tibi ejected from Olei Hagardom plenum
Knesset
holds session in memory of 12 Jewish underground members hung by
British. Tibi: They fired at civilian bus, killed minister; are they
heroes or terrorists?
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3860306,00.html
European group may probe Israel decision to indict
Arab MK
The
Inter-Parliamentary Union is considering sending representatives to
oversee the legal proceedings against Hadash chairman Mohammed Barakeh,
charged with assaulting a police officer during an anti-separation
fence rally in the West Bank.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155188.html
Communist Party of Israel, "Tel Aviv Court to Hold
First Hearing in Political Case against MK Mohammed Barakeh Tomorrow"
The
Attorney General indicted MK Barakeh in November 2009 in relation to
four separate incidents that occurred at demonstrations over the course
of the last three years. These protests were staged against the
Separation Wall, the War on Lebanon, and the lack of accountability of
those responsible for the October 2000 killings. . . . The indictment
is not based on any evidence that would convict MK Barakeh; it simply
criminalizes his legitimate political activities and attempts to harm
his reputation and the status of a Communist and Arab leader. A
demonstration will be held near the Tel-Aviv Court, tomorrow, at 9:30
a.m.
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2010/barakeh090310.html
Other
News
David
Kimche, As`ad Abukhalil
Look
at this obituary of a former leader of Mossad by Kershner in the Times.
1) She did not say that he obtained his wigs from the same place that
the dumb 27 Mossad killers in Dubai obtain their wigs. 2) Notice this:
"Employing a combination of cunning and charm..." Yes, an Israeli
killer is charming, although she never met him, I assume, although I am
sure she met his successors. Charming? Imagine if Nazila Fathi
describes the head of the intelligence section of the Iranian
Revolutionary Guards as "charming." If that happens, Fathi would be
forced to locate from Toronto, Iran to Cyberia, Iran. The New York
Times would find any Israeli "charming." 3) She said: "He led Israel’s
delegations in negotiations with Egypt and Lebanon..." Yes, after
Israel invaded Lebanon and killed more than 20,000 Lebanese and
Palestinians mostly civilians in 1982, it forced a peace treaty on
Lebanon which Kimche imposed on the country, before Israel was forced
to humiliatingly get out of most of Lebanon. 4) Kershner said: "Often
holding unorthodox views, Mr. Kimche encouraged Israeli relations with
Christians in Lebanon..." No, his views were unorthodox. He encouraged
Israeli relations NOT WITH CHRISTIANS in Lebanon but with Christian
right-wing, fascist militias in Lebanon, like the Lebanese Forces.
There is a difference between right-wing, fascistic militias and
"Christians in Lebanon." So the arming of the South Lebanon Army and
Lebanese Forces appears in the script by Kershner like a humanitarian
mission. 5) She said: "He wrote or helped write several books on the
region." Yes, he wrote books along with his brother but those books no
one read (probably except me), and they had nothing to offer except ink.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/03/david-kimche.html
Young Israeli Arab leader: Like Ajami director, I
don't represent Israel
"Where does it not represent you?
In
the occupation policy, in the settlement policy, in the policy of
racism and discrimination. Eighty-percent unemployment among women; the
many employers who do not hire Arabs. The development budget - hardly 4
percent of it reaches the Arab local authorities. Upper Nazareth is
almost swallowing up Nazareth because it is expanding so much, and
Nazareth has no lands to expand onto. Nazareth does not have an
industrial zone. Education - I don't study my past, my identity - I
study the history of the Jewish people. I also see the teachers' fear
of teaching our history, the fear that the Education Ministry will
dismiss them."
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155132.html
Ice cream truck serves as bedroom
Netanya
police discover 14 Palestinians illegally residing in Israel who use
truck as sleeping quarters, including youths of 13, 14-years-old.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3860392,00.html
Analysis/Opinion/Human
Interest
Border Control / Biden and the bulldozer, Akiva Eldar
U.S.
Vice
President Joe Biden, who arrived in Israel yesterday, didn't look
for camels among the cars on the road from Ben-Gurion International
Airport to Jerusalem. In a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing
held two years ago for the United States Ambassador to Israel, James
Cunningham, Biden heard that the Israelis even know how to ride
bulldozers.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155131.html
When Israelis degrade Israel by humiliating Joe Biden
Why
would Israeli officials degrade Israel by humiliating the
vice-president of the United States? What conceivable advantage is
there in the Interior Ministry choosing the occasion of a high-profile
visit by Joseph R. Biden, Jr., a mission aimed at soothing strained
relations between Israel and the Obama administration, to announce the
approval of 1,600 new homes for Israelis in East Jerusalem?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155257.html
Israelis and Palestinians: Agreeing to Talk, and to
Fail, Tony Karon
Even
as Senator Mitchell shuttles between them, both sides appear set to
escalate their confrontation on the ground, in growing battles over
expanded Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and elsewhere and over
the status of various sites considered holy by both Jews and Muslims.
Last Friday’s confrontations between Israeli police and stone-throwing
Palestinian youths in Jerusalem may be a portent that the latest round
of peace talks could, in fact, be starting under the cloud of a
looming intifadeh.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1970563,00.html#ixzz0hhloEwv5
The price tag for Israeli intransigence, Paul
Woodward
The
day before Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Israel — supposedly on a
mission to help kick-start peace talks between Israelis and
Palestinians — the Netanyahu government made its contempt for the Obama
administration clear by approving new settlement construction. They were
quick to take offense — they being the Israelis! "While we
welcome Vice President Biden, a longtime friend and
supporter of Israel,” Danny Danon, the deputy speaker of the Knesset,
told the Washington Post,
“we see it as nothing short of an insult that President Obama himself
is not coming.” Washington on the other hand had no interest in
creating a fuss
about settlement growth — its impotence on that particular issue has
already been amply demonstrated. Pushing for a real settlement freeze
is passé. The new game is proximity talks and shuttle diplomacy.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/the-price-tag-for-israeli-intransigence.html
Biden takes one on the chin
Having spent
most of the day stressing "his personal love for the Jewish state as well as the
‘unshakable’ commitment of the United States to Israel’s security," Vice
President
Biden
in return was granted a special surprise by Israel’s
right-wing religious Interior Minister, Eli Yishai – the announcement
of 1,600 more housing units to be built at the Ultra-Orthodox
settlement of Ramat Shlomo in East Jerusalem. Having recently been
dragged into negotiations with Israel kicking and screaming, the
Palestinians were naturally apoplectic.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/biden-takes-one-on-the-chin.html
Netanyahu and Pastor Hagee’s Lovefest on Eve of
Biden’s Arrival in Israel
On the evening after two days of
talks between US Special Envoy for the Middle East George Mitchell
and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu appeared
onstage with the far-right Texas-based Pastor John Hagee in Jerusalem.
The occasion was Hagee’s Night To Honor Israel, an event the
preacher typically organizes as a forum to tout his ministry’s millions
in donations to Israeli organizations and to level bellicose rhetoric
against Israel’s perceived enemies. On this evening, Hagee called
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
“the Hitler of the Middle East” and denounced the Goldstone Report as
“character assassination by an unbiased and uninformed committee.”
http://maxblumenthal.com/2010/03/pastor-hagee-and-netanyahus-lovefest-on-eve-of-bidens-arrival-in-israel/
Lobby’s purchase of Republican Campbell recalls its
purchase of Obama, Philip Weiss
Alison Weir of If
Americans Knew has published a piece
on Tom Campbell’s back pages–the
former California congressman who is now running for Senate. Note that
Campbell obviously had realist bona fides back in the day, but has
utterly abandoned his pro-Palestinian position. Campbell’s collapse is
remarkably similar to Obama’s progress during the same period. Obama
threw Khalidi and Abunimah under the bus; Campbell is throwing Weir
under the bus. This is a story quite simply about corruption by the
Israel lobby, of both parties.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/lobbys-purchase-of-republican-campbell-recalls-its-purchase-of-obama.html
No article that deals with the Middle East in the
New York Times is innocent: no article
Look
at this one. Basically, Middle East coverage in the Times is a
combination of ignorance and prejudice sprinkled with Israeli
propaganda disinformation and leaks. Look at this review of this Middle
East restaurant in the Times. First, they give Fayruz a title that she
never had. Secondly, they say this: "But sahlab, a sweet custard that
nods to France’s occupation of Lebanon between the world wars. When
there is absolutely no connection between the French and this dish,
when a variation of this existed in various parts with no connection to
the French. Thirdly, it said: "Ms. Bishara is a Brooklynite, though
also a Palestinian raised in Israel, where her brother served in the Knesset." No mention that this Palestinian brother
is Azmi Bisharah who has been chased out of his own country by Zionist
occupiers.
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-article-that-deals-with-middle-east.html
Ethan
Bronner: propagandizing
Matt
sent me this (I cite with his permission): "The middle east studies
center on my campus receives all sorts of publications which the staff
leaves out in the lounge area. One of these is the bulletin of the
"Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies", a Zionist think tank
churning out all sorts of propaganda (sample title: "Is Gaza occupied?
Redefining the Legal Status of Gaza") - it is after all where Netanyahu
delivered his speech "accepting" a Palestinian state last June 14. This
think tank seems to think the two-state solution is passe, preferring
the no-state solution of land swaps with Jordan and Egypt. One of the
guest speakers at their May 2009 "Debating US Leadership in Checking
Iran" forum was Ethan Bronner - along with Danny Ayalon, Major General
Yitzhak Ben-Israel, Abe Foxman, and other such characters. The lone
dissenting opinion in that particular forum, that Israel could deter a
nuclear Iran, was that of Josef Joffe, a fellow at the Hoover
Institution and contributor to Commentary. Now, one might say that
Ethan Bronner's participation in the forum of an extremist pro-Israel
organization is innocent, but imagine if Taghreed el-Khodary
participated in a forum sponsored by Hamas. And why would the
organizers - who only sponsor the most extreme sorts of Zionist thought
and thinkers - invite Bronner in the first place, unless they knew him
to be part of the club?.... As'ad, yes, you can post it - the bulletin
is here:
(see page 9 of the print copy, the right side of page 5 of the pdf) I
just realized I spoke or wrote too quickly - there was a token Palestinian
at the conference, Elias Zananiri of the Standing Cooperation
Committee: (see the list of other speakers on the far right of the same
page with Bronner)
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2010/03/ethan-bronner-propagandizing.html
Chris
is west and Palestine is east, and never the twain shall meet
In this
Hardball clip, at around 2:25,
Chris Matthews says George Mitchell has to cross the Allenby bridge to
get to Ramallah! Hello!! And Ethan Bronner doesn’t bother correcting
him either.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/03/west-is-east-and-never-the-twain-shall-meet.html
Khalid Amayreh interviewed by Silvia Cattori
Khalid
Amayreh (*) is a journalist who lives in Hebron, a city brutalized and
bloodied daily by armed Jewish settlers who are driving the authentic
inhabitants by force. He is what might be called a true Palestinian; a
man of integrity who was never seduced by financial rewards and
prestige; a man standing who has remained with his martyred people in
order to witness every day the atrocities he suffers at the hands of
the Israeli army, but also, and this is the most painful, at the hands
of the authorities of Ramallah. He himself has been imprisoned,
savagely beaten without knowing why, by this Palestinian police to the
training of which Bernard Kouchner is so pleased to have participated.
http://palestinethinktank.com/2010/03/10/khalid-amayreh-interviewed-by-silvia-cattori/
On
the day Yafa`s refugees return - zochrot 2010
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fbp2Ep9BXpQ&feature=player_embedded
Iraq
Tuesday: 10 Iraqis Killed, 4 Wounded
Light
violence left at least 10 Iraqis dead and four wounded today. More
casualties were reported in an attack in Duluiya. Two U.S. soldiers
were killed in a vehicular accident aw well. Also, British authorities
opened an inquiry into allegations that British troops tortured and
killed Iraqi civilians. Meanwhile, the two largest Iraqi parties are
both claiming to lead in vote counts.
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2010/03/09/tuesday-10-iraqis-killed-4-wounded/
Nouri al-Maliki and Ayad Allawi both claim victory in
Iraq elections
The
two front-runners in Iraq’s national election both claimed
victory yesterday after the authorities postponed announcing the
result. The electoral alliances led by the Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki
and his predecessor Ayad Allawi are neck and neck according to
estimates by observers. Both are seeking to bolster their claims in
case the result is inconclusive and they find themselves in a dispute
later this week over who gets to form a new government.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article7055830.ece
Riz
Khan - US withdrawal from Iraq
We look at the impact of the
country's recent parliamentary elections on the nation's stability and
US withdrawal plans.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeGGRX6aj0g&feature=youtube_gdata
Iraqi refugee saved from deportation at last minute
BEIRUT: An attempt on Monday by General Security to forcibly deport an
Iraqi refugee was called off at the very last minute, according to
human rights workers. Saad Muhammad Ismail, 54, was seen being dragged
by two General Security officials across Beirut's International
Airport. Ismail, who is a refugee registered with the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=1&article_id=112550
U.S.
and Other World News
Manhattan vigil for Muslim held prisoner for three
years
NEW YORK // Far from Guantanamo Bay or anywhere else the United States
might hold prisoners, a Muslim-American man has been held for almost
three years in solitary confinement in a Manhattan jail. But he is not
forgotten. About 100 supporters gathered on Monday night outside
the federal facility where Syed Fahad Hashmi awaits trial. They were
marking the 1,371st day since he was incarcerated and the 871st day
since the implementation of the Special Administrative Measures (SAMs)
under which he has been held in pretrial, 23-hour lockdown.
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100310/FOREIGN/703099913/1140
Waterboarding sessions brought detainees ‘close to
death’: report
The waterboarding sessions that terrorist suspects were subjected to
during the Bush administration were "administered with meticulous
cruelty" and were in part designed so that detainees acted as "guinea
pigs" for future interrogation sessions, says an exhaustive new report.
http://rawstory.com/2010/03/waterboarding-detainees-close-death/
Special forces probed after children killed in
Afghanistan
The men could be charged with murder, manslaughter or negligence and, if
convicted, could face jail terms in a military prison.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/
special-forces-probed-after-childrens-deaths-in-afghanistan/story-e6frg6nf-1225838454551
New Afghan leader was jailed for attempted murder
in Germany
Abdul Zahir, the Afghan tribal leader chosen to bring law and order to
the area cleared by the joint US and British troop surge, has
previously been jailed for attempted murder.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/7399867/
New-Afghan-leader-was-jailed-for-attempted-murder-in-Germany.html
Peres calls for Iran’s expulsion from UN
Israeli
President
Shimon Peres has called for the expulsion of Iran from the
United Nations for its earlier calls to wipe out the Jewish state from
the world map.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/restofasia/
Peres-calls-for-Iran-s-expulsion-from-UN/Article1-517092.aspx
In case you missed it: Does Iran's President Want
Israel Wiped Off The Map?
Let's
take a closer look at what Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said.
The 'New York Times' placed the complete speech at our disposal. Here's
an excerpt from the publication dated 2005-10-30.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article12790.htm
Israel
Intends to Build Civilian Nuclear Plants
STEVEN
ERLANGER - IHT - "Israel has never admitted that it has nuclear
weapons, and it has refused to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty."
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=38705
Former Israeli officials in the U.S. government
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvDHaJiDUek&feature=player_embedded
Israel, Syria pursue nuclear-powered Mideast
PARIS – Is the Middle East about to go officially nuclear? Bitter
rivals Israel and Syria both announced Tuesday that they want to pursue
atomic power plants, potentially complicating the diplomatic storm over
Iran's nuclear program and fueling a widening web of suspicion across
the Middle East.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100310/ap_on_bi_ge/ml_israel_nuclear_energy
Egypt to finance renovation of synagogues, Jewish
sites
Egypt
will shoulder the costs of restoring the country's Jewish houses of
worship said the culture minister Tuesday, two days after a historic
synagogue in Cairo's ancient Jewish quarter was rededicated in a
private ceremony.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1155173.html |
| For further information contact Shadi Fadda |
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